School’s out and it’s county fair season! Some good old-fashioned fair fun certainly can be had this week at what has been called the premier county fair of central Illinois. The Sangamon County Fair features entertainment, livestock shows, exhibitors, queen pageant, carnival, rodeo, monster trucks, demolition derby and all the fair food you can imagine. […]
Arts & Culture
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An antidote for cynicism? Catholic Social Teaching
If you’ve driven past the Sacred Heart Convent and Sacred Heart-Griffin High School campus on West Monroe Street recently, you’ve probably noticed the many “golf signs” – what the printer calls them – around the perimeter. They proclaim, “Hear the cry of Earth,” “One Global Human Family” and “Immigrant Rights & Dignity.” Our hope is […]
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The first face of hope: How United Way brings comfort after crisis
When flames consume a home, what families remember most is not always the fire. Sometimes, it’s the face of the person who showed up when everything else was gone. That face is often Mary’s. A longtime volunteer supported through United Way of Central Illinois, Mary responds after housefires to provide emergency supplies and emotional support. […]
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Ballerina falls flat, Dangerous Animals has bite, Al Pacino can’t do justice to The Ritual
De Armas in over her head in Ballerina If there was ever a scene-stealing moment, it occurred when Ana de Armas made a brief appearance in the 2021 James Bond adventure, No Time to Die. As Paloma, she claims to be a fresh-faced spy with only minimal training. This proves to be a modest assertion […]
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Step back in time to golden era of rock ’n’ roll
Pasfield House Sock HopSat., June 7, 7-11 p.m. | 525 S. Pasfield St. | info@pasfieldhouse.com DANCE | Step back in time to golden era of rock ‘n’ roll It’s not often one gets a chance to “step back in time and groove to the golden era of rock ‘n’ roll,” but that opportunity is on […]
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To a spider
When I reach at end of day The hostel where I always stay A haven in Ohio woods I find you among my goods This time I ease you carefully Onto a nearby buckeye tree Check to see no thread attached Your colors are completely matched I can’t restore you to your home But you’re […]
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Something Rotten! is something sensational
Something Rotten!continues its run June 4-7 at the Springfield Muni. Performances start at 8:30 p.m. and tickets are available at TheMuni.org or at The Muni box office beginning 90 minutes before each performance. Something Rotten! premiered on the Muni stage as a boisterous, splashy and somewhat inappropriate parody that gleefully skewers both Shakespearean comedy and […]
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A taste of Ireland
Dancing at LughnasaThe play will be performed at 7:30 p.m. Friday, June 6; 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, June 7; and 2 p.m. Sunday, June 8., plus 2 p.m. Sunday, June 8. Tickets are $22 for adults or $20 for seniors over 60 and students. Call 217-523-2787 or go to hcfta.org to reserve tickets. […]
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The many connections between immigrants and the U.S. health care system
These days, mention of the word “immigration” often conjures up issues related to politics, the law, culture, economics and even whether getting a speeding ticket makes a person a criminal. As a retired primary care physician with no special expertise in immigrant health care who was invited by a friend to join the Springfield Immigrant […]
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Harnessing the Spirit
The Netflix movie The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, based on the memoir of William Kamkwamba, is an inspiring story about a young boy’s ingenuity and determination to overcome adversity. William Kamkwamba was born in 1987 into a Christian family in Malawi, a country where magic ruled and modern science was a mystery. It was […]
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Quotes From Ron
My dad, aged 21, is about to set off overseas with his father’s blessing. Writes his younger brother who is contemplating Northwestern “Katherin Redson is okay. She is really a Princess. You would approve she is S, S & G: Sweet Simple and Good” Thus, Ronald leaves Northwestern and is off to the Continent, flinging […]
